Modesto Christian girls soccer team to play for Division VI banner

It sounds like the start of a bad joke.

“A pair of cheerleaders, a former softball star and a state champion basketball player walk onto a soccer field ... .”

Only it’s no joke.

Modesto Christian girls soccer coach Jason Hardy has taken the most unlikely assortment of players and turned them into a potential Sac-Joaquin Section champion.

The Crusaders will play for their first blue banner in nearly a decade after winning a marathon match and penalty kick shootout Wednesday. Third-seeded Modesto Christian outlasted host Millennium, advancing to the Division VI final with a 3-1 decision in kicks.

The game was tied at 1-1 after 80 minutes of regulation play and two 10-minute overtime periods. Rachel Smith, Danielle Fortik and Alexa Hardy capitalized from the penalty stripe, reserving Modesto Christian’s spot in Saturday’s final.

“I’ve coached for eight years,” Hardy said, “and I’ve never had so many people say how crazy that was.”

Freshman midfielder Juliet Hardy tallied Modesto Christian’s only regulation goal on a set piece from about 30 yards out. The strike was her 14th of the season. She has all four of the Crusaders’ postseason goals.

“She’s just stepped up in an unbelievable way,” said coach Hardy, also her father.

Goalie Jaclyn Warwick had three saves for the Crusaders (12-3-6), one of five Stanislaus District teams competing for a section title Saturday.

Top seeds East Union, Ripon and Ripon Christian will play at Lincoln High’s Alex G. Spanos Stadium in Stockton. The Lancers will tangle with crosstown rival Manteca, a No. 3 seed.

Modesto Christian is the only one of the five that has to travel to Sacramento.

At this point, that’s the least of Hardy’s concerns.

The Crusaders’ remarkable run began with a desperate search for players in February. Of the 19 players on his roster, only two – center midfielder Juliet Hardy (Modesto Ajax) and Carsyn Hoogendoorn (Manteca Futbol Club) – have club experience.

Instead, Hardy has filled his roster with the small private school’s best-available athletes.

“I can’t tell you how much I’ve had to beg, borrow and steal. ‘Hey, would you like to play soccer? You look athletic, ever play soccer?’ “Hardy said. “I’ve got two cheerleaders. I’ve got three basketball players that have never played before. That’s not all. I’ve got two track stars known for track, not soccer. I’ve got a softball player that I’m still teaching the rules of the game.

“I couldn’t make this stuff up.”

In a season full of obstacles and challenges, the biggest awaits the Crusaders in the final – three-time section champion Capital Christian, the defending D-VII champion.

The Crusaders will play the top-seeded Cougars (19-3-1) at Cosumnes Oaks at 10 a.m.

Capital Christian crushed Holt Academy in the other semifinal 10-0 and has outscored its playoff opponents 16-0.

“I’m not going to say these girls can’t do it,” Hardy said. “It’s been a fight for everything we’ve had to win, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Modesto Christian has proven to be a road warrior. The Crusaders pounded the Falcons’ net on Wednesday, forcing the keeper to make 35 saves.They’re 3-1-2 on the road and unbeaten in five neutral-site matches.

“Worst field I’ve ever played on,” Hardy said of Millennium’s pitch. “To their advantage, they’re used to it.”

Modesto Christian hasn’t appeared in a section final since 2006, when it won the last of three straight Division V titles.

When Hardy took over the program, the former Modesto Ajax club coach saw the potential but realized he had to be patient with the process.

Champions aren’t built overnight, are they?

The girls, this rag-tag assortment of the campus’ best athletes, have proven otherwise.

“The way it’s all come together has been a huge blessing,” Hardy said. “To be completely honest, I never thought we’d go this far. I thought we’d get in, but I didn’t think things would happen this quickly. It’s been an amazing road.”

This story was originally published May 14, 2015 at 7:22 PM with the headline "Modesto Christian girls soccer team to play for Division VI banner."